Six years after buying his land in Poland, Bogdan has a
beautiful home.

Bogdan Pękalski is an experienced self-builder. For years
he has designed and created lots of gardens
and home interiors for people who appreciated his style. About
six years ago he bought a piece of land in Krzywcza, Poland and
decided to build his dream house on a hill. he
planned, designed and built it on his own trying to match the
shape of the building to the landscape.

After years of trial and error he built "Hobbitowa". Some of
his friends helped him with the roundwood timber
construction and other heavy jobs, but most of the
work was his own. Bogdan says,

"It's hard to believe but if you follow your
dreams and devote enough time and nerve, everything seems to be
possible!"

The house, with a living room, bathroom and two
bedrooms, is about 45m2 (484
ft2). Bogdan used roundwood
from local willow trees,
clay for the interior plaster, lime for the exterior plaster, cob
(straw and clay) and stones to build it. The floor is made of cordwood.

The house has a large open-plan living room with a
beautiful cordwood floor and an open fire. Sharing the fireplace
chimney is a kitchenette with a traditional wood burning stove.

The house is off-grid with its own water well, domestic
sewage works and an array of photovoltaic panels for electricity.